What to say at appeal panel hearing?

[Schar]

Hi we are going to the appeal hearing next week and nervous about what to say etc.Its for our son to go to grammar school,he didn't pass the 11+,scores were NV 117,VR 120 and Maths 118,but since then has come on leaps and bounds and in mock SATS got Reading 5C,Writing 5C and Maths 4A, his teachers expect all 5's when proper mocks are taken.This is what we will tell panel but apart from that have no idea what to say or what will be asked.A few other children from his year are appealing the same school,we have letters from headmaster and teacher.
Would really appreciate any help and advice about what we should say to give our son the best chance?
Thanks

Surely for Grammar school you are looking at all level 5's? Is he a summer born?

What LEA are you in?

Hi Seeker,Kent is our area and July is his birth month

Then all you can do is offer academic evidence. Have you got good supporting letters from his Head and his Teacher? And other purely academic evidence?

Hi yes have letter from head teacher and class teacher.Class teacher told us not to take any school work as that wouldnt help our case

Sorry, that sounded a bit brusque. What I mean is that the appeal won't be interested, except in passing, about anything about him except whether he is of a sufficiently hilt level academically to go to grammar school, so items no use talking about clubs and out of school activities and things.

Be positive "this school suits him because...." Rather than "we don't want this school because....." . If the school you want has any specialisms that match your son's abilities, that's worth mentioning. Oh, and they'll probably ask what sort of books he likes reading.

How can you appeal if he didn't pass?? My son didn't pass either by just a few marks.

A fail is a fail. You can't just change the rules willy nilly!! Or can you?

Housewifefromheaven I didn't make the rules! And yes we are allowed to appeal,how does your comment help my question?

Of course you can appeal! If he had passed, the OP wouldn't need to appeal, would she!

I'm in the process of writing our speech,the teachers was expecting a pass on the 11+ but during one of the exams he had a nosebleed (a backward one where blood flies down throat) and he finds them very traumatic so we do feel that is why he didn't get the points we thought he would

Well I never. Next you'll be telling me i can appeal the theory test I just failed. Only by two marks you understand

Schar - You need to concentrate on showing the panel that your son is of grammar school standard. The appeal panel cannot admit him unless they are convinced he is of the standard. Explain why you think he underperformed in the test and give evidence to support that if you have it. You also need to make the case that this is the right school for him and he will be disadvantaged if he isn't admitted.

Schar,
I will be brutally honest here and say that I do some appeals for an LA that still has some grammar schools and the kind of SATs figures you are talking about would not be considered good enough to be considered of grammar school standard, especially the maths.
Every admission appeal is different and you may find a more sympathetic panel but I think you need to consider whether it is in the best interest of your son to go to a grammar school where they might be struggling to keep up.

I disagree, admissions. About the SATs bit, anyway. My dd finished year 6 with a 4a in maths, thrived at grammar school and ended up with an A at GCSE.

I think that the vast majority of grammar school kids do start with high level 5s. However, I just wanted to say that my dd passed the 11+, so went to gs with two high level 5s and a 4a. She never struggled- she was in set 6 of 7 for maths- there were 8 in the set, and practically everyone ended up with an A at GCSE.
So one lower mark shouldn't rule someone out. However, I do think it might make it very difficult to make a convincing case on appeal.

Which actually says a lot about how crap the system is- but how is not the
place!

OP- I know the teacher said don't take books, but if there ARE any books that show loads of really high quality work, then take them with you to the appeal, and refer to them in your remarks "I have some examples of his work if you would like to see them"

Schar - if you look on the eleven plus forum there is a section on Appeals and a section on Kent. You might get some good advice there. But I do think that with not particularly high sats scores you will need to provide good evidence of academic ability. Was there any reason for underperformance on the day? A traumatic nosebleed might explain one low score but all three scores are pretty similar. Don't you need to get 120 in each test for Kent? Did he effectively fail all 3? Might be easier if there was one mark significantly lower than the other two.

I do think the eleven plus isn't particularly good at selecting the right children and there is one school of thought that children who just scrape into grammar school get more benefit from a selective education that those who score highly. One of my kids scored very highly in the eleven plus (different area) and is about to leave school with fairly indifferent qualifications. The other only scraped through the eleven plus (despite being 5A in all 3 SATs tests) and is doing exceptionally well at school. The difference between them is, I think, attitude to work - something the eleven plus can't test for.

Although you say his marks have increased considerably since the 11+, don't forget that others will have too. Those who passed may now be reaching high 5's or 6's. Don't get so convinced that he has to go to the grammar that you don't feel able to be positive about his schooling if your appeal is successful. What I am saying is don't risk making your son feel he has failed if the appeal is unsuccessful.